1
as in to rub
to make smooth by friction
after sawing the board in half, rasp the ends to remove any splinters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in to annoy
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts
the two siblings seemed intent on rasping each other for the entire car trip
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to wear
to damage or diminish by continued friction
during the last ice age, glaciers rasped the surface, leaving the deeply scarred rock
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rasp
Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 15 Feb. 2025
Kennedy’s vocal rasp is not caused by an infection or respiratory condition.
—Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 29 Jan. 2025
Steve Douglas, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2024
And then Elisabeth uses it, and her spine splits open, leaving her a rasping husk of flesh while an alternate self rises, in the dewy buff, to survey her taut flesh with a clinical eye in the mirror.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for rasp
Noun
Over Martin’s delicate playing, her aching rasp resonated to the rafters, a melancholy shudder that still sounded comforting.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 15 Feb. 2025
Kennedy’s vocal rasp is not caused by an infection or respiratory condition.
—Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 29 Jan. 2025
Verb
City trailed 1-0 at halftime after Marcus Rashford’s rasping long-range strike in the eighth minute and a glaring miss from the prolific Haaland from barely two meters out.
—Steve Douglas, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2024
And then Elisabeth uses it, and her spine splits open, leaving her a rasping husk of flesh while an alternate self rises, in the dewy buff, to survey her taut flesh with a clinical eye in the mirror.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for rasp
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rasp
Noun
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Many organisations are using the EU’s framework globally as a benchmark rather than creating their own from scratch.—
Diana Spehar,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2025
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And so Blomfield, who knows how to code, also tried his hand at vibe coding — both to rejig his blog and to create from scratch a website called Recipe Ninja.—
John Ruwitch,
NPR,
30 May 2025
Verb
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So in the long run, even somewhere like Oxford won't be rubbing their hands with glee if life is harder for Harvard — because Oxford and Harvard do projects together.—
Willem Marx,
NPR,
5 June 2025
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Privately, Musk rubbed a number of senior officials the wrong way during his time in government, and his complaints about a key legislative goal may further agitate his critics in the administration.—
Miranda Nazzaro,
The Hill,
4 June 2025
Verb
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To determine whether demodex mites are the cause of skin irritations, dermatologists can tape or lightly scrape the top layer of skin and place the sample under a microscope, Ricardo-Gonzalez said.—
Kameryn Griesser,
CNN Money,
30 May 2025
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In the nine games since, Soto has scraped together just four hits in 34 at bats.—
Jon Vankin,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 May 2025
Verb
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The comedy as a second-class sibling to the drama is a notion that has annoyed the people who make television comedies for years.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
7 June 2025
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In some cases, that will be obvious: You’ll get annoyed by weird or loud noises and odors, notice your energy bill has skyrocketed, or spot signs of a leak.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
3 June 2025
Verb
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One Amazon reviewer wore them during a trip to Italy and said their feet felt great after being on them all day in the heat.—
Rylee Johnston,
Travel + Leisure,
4 June 2025
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Morgan wore an all black outfit, while his wife adorned a black dress with floral designs.—
Hannah Sacks,
People.com,
4 June 2025
Noun
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There’s no music, either, to soften or ennoble proceedings, only the indifferent murmur of weather over the startling debris of human conflict, or the slow creak of a galleon on lapping waters as sailors are sent cruelly to their deaths.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
28 May 2025
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My assumption is that most rational human beings would happily stay in a warm and cozy office and simply listen to the building creak and groan under the force of the violent gusts.—
Frederick Dreier,
Outside Online,
11 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Neither Blanco nor federal prosecutors have filed motions since the jurors testified, though they are expected to do so in the coming months with arguments about whether Patron should be granted a new trial.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 June 2025
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Earlier this week, Robinson and his wife filed a $500 million cross-complaint against the former staff members.—
Stephanie Giang-Paunon,
FOXNews.com,
31 May 2025
Verb
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Say your mother kept bugging you to change a bad habit.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
11 May 2025
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Next season is when all the little things start to bug me.—
Ryan Schwartz,
TVLine,
21 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rasp.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rasp. Accessed 13 Jun. 2025.
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